Hand and power operated means



Dec. 16, 1952 F. F. ROSSMANN 2,621,543

HAND AND POWER OPERATED MEANS Filed Jan. v22, 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET l F l 6. l. 5,

. J6 INVENTOR- PETER F. EOSSMANN BY i4 ATTORNEY FIG.6.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 FIG. 5.

F'IC5. 4A. FIG.4B.

P. F. ROSSMANN HAND AND POWER OPERATED MEANS FIGALC. FIG.4D PIC-3.45. FlG.4|- PETEEF.

Dec. 16, 1952 Filed Jan. 22, 1948 a f 3 J4 1 27 INVENTOR. EOSSMANN ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 16, 1952 HAND AND POWER OPERATED MEANS Peter F. Rossmann, Morristown, N. J., assignor,

by direct and mesne assignments, to Hupp Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Virginia Application anuary 22, 1948, Serial No. 3,662

6 Claims. l

The present invention relates to arrangements for the raising and lowering of windows, more particularly to an improved automatic window regulating system for automobiles and other vehicles.

Known types of automatic window regulating devices for automobiles operated by electric, hydraulic or pneumatic means all require a substantial alteration in the conventional mechanism for raising and lowering windows of standard construction. Moreover, none of the known arrangements provides for a satisfactory optional manual operation or regulation, to supplement or replace the automatic system in the event of failure or other emergencies. 7

As is evident, both damage and discomfort may result if it is impossible to close the window of an automobile to keep out weather or to prevent theft through failure of the automatic system. Likewise, in the case of accident, when the doors become jammed or the electric, hydraulic or other mechanism is damaged, escape may be entirely impossible or other serious dangers may arise, as is understood.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to substantially overcome the afore-mentioned drawbacks and defects inherent in prior automatic window regulating systems and to pro vide an improved arrangement for regulating a window both manually or automatically, substantially without requiring any additional switching or adjusting operations when changing from one to the other operation.

Another object of the invention is to provide a window regulating system of this type which will enable the manual and automatic regulation of the window to be carried out substantially without mutual interference.

Further objects of the invention are to provide a device of the above type which is both simple in construction and cheap to manufacture, which will require little space and which may be easily and readily installed in an automobile door and structurally combined with existing manual window regulating devices.

Further objects as well as novel aspects of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of a few practical embodiments thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification and wherein:

Figure 1 is an isomeric exploded view of a combined manual and automatic window regulator constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention;

according to the invention; and

Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-section through the adjustable coupling mechanism forming the main element of Figure 1;

Figure 3 illustrates diagrammatically an automobile doorhaving a window regulating device according to the invention installed therein, one wall of said door being shown removed in order to reveal the inside mechanism;

Figures 4A to 4F arev fractional cross-sectional views taken on lines SA-4A to 4F4F, respectively, of Figure 2;

Figures 5, 6 and 7 are further fractional crosssectional views showing various modifications o the .clutch control element of Figure 2;

Figure 8 is a fractional isometric view illustrating a modified control of the coupling mechanism Figure 9 is a partial cross-sectional view similar to Figure 2 and showing a further modification of the'coupling control mechanism in accordance with the invention.

throughout the different views of the drawings.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, numeral l0 represents a hand crank or equivalent control member provided with dog clutch teeth II which are adapted to engage clutch teeth 12 on a sleeve shifter or slidable control member [3 concentrically mounted upon a shaft I4. Crank II] is arranged to rotate freely upon the shaft H (see Figure 4A) while sleeve I3 is keyed to a fiat I5 of .said shaft by key l6, as shown more clearly inFigures 4B and 4C. The outer surface of the sleeve shifter. I3 is fitted with a circular rack. l1 arranged to engage the teeth I8 of a pinion shaft 20. The latter is in turn arranged to be rotated by a pinion shaft lever 2i which is connected to a link 22 attached to the armature 23 of a solenoid or magnetic actuator winding 24. The rack I l on sleeve shifter l3 permits of rotation of the sleeve independently of its axial position between the engaged and disengaged positions of the dog clutch teeth II and I2, as shown in Figures 9 and 2, respectively.

A compression spring 25 is arranged between the sleeve l3 and a friction disc 26 which latter is thereby held in contact with the face 2'! of a worm wheel 33 which meshes with the teeth of a worm gear 30. The latter is attached to the shaft 3| of an electric motor or prime mover 32. The worm wheel 33 isarranged to rotate freely upon shaft [4 (see Figure 43) while the friction disc 26 is keyed to said shaft as shown in Figure 4D, but is free to move slightly axially. Friction disc 26 and worm wheel 33 are positioned upon shaft H! by a pair of retaining rings 35 located in grooves 36. The axial spacing of rings 35 is such as to normally provide a slight gap 3'! between the disc 26 and the face 21 of the worm wheel 33, as shown in Figure 2, to permit the elements to have a desired relative slippage.

Shaft drives a gear 38 through a uni-directional spring clutch which locksgear 38 against rotating back through the mechanism. Gear 38 in turn meshes with a gear 40 which forms a part of the window regulating mechanism, as shown more clearly in Figure 3. The uni-directional clutch described in greater detail in my co-pending application Ser. No. 790,783, filed December 10, 1947, entitled Window Qperating Device for Vehicles, comprises, in the example shown, a pair of interengaging lugs M and 42 connected to or integral with the shaft 14, on the one hand, and the gear 38, on the other hand, and a coil spring 43 having hooked ends 44 interposed between the engaging faces of said lugs in the assembled position, said spring furthermore engaging the inside of a housing 45 at its periphery. Although only .a single turn has been shown for the spring 431 in Figure l, a plurality of turns may be provided, as shown in Figure .2. By using a spring clutch of this type, rotary motion maybe transmitted from the shaft 44 to the gear 38 through the lug 4| engaging theinnerends of the'hooks 44, thereby contracting the spring and releasing it from engagement with .the housing 45, while rotation of the lug 42 by gear .38 causing engagement of the outer faces of the hooks 44 will result in an expansion of the spring and locking against the inside of housing 45. In this manner, rotation may be transmitted only in the direction from either the crank ID .or motor 32 to the window operating mechanism, while transmission of rotation in the reverse direction is substantially prevented.

Figures 1 and 2 show the arrangement in the automatic operating position indicated as H position in the drawing for the link 22 and the three-pole, double-throw self centering operatin switch .45. In this position of the switch 45, the battery or equivalent electric power source 41 is connected to the motor 32 in one direction in series with a further switch, such as a snap or micro switch 48 arranged to be controlled by a nose or projection 49 of the solenoid armature or plunger 23. More particularly, switch 48 will be closed by the solenoid in its excited or energized condition shown in the drawing and will be opened in the de-energized condition of the solenoid. The solenoid armature is spring loaded as shown at 50 to cause it to return to the normal or de-energized position and to open the contacts of the switch 48 upon release of the main switch to the central or neutral position J.

The purpose of switch 48 is to delay the starting of the motor 32 untilafter the crank has been decoupled from the sleeve shifter l3 and frictionaldriving connection has been established between the worm wheel 33 and friction coupling disc 26,. This will prevent rotation of the crank by the motor during the initial motor operation. In other words, there are two parallel electric circuits connected to the battery ,4! in either the H and K position of the switch 46 to effect rotation of the motor in one or the other direction for raising or lowering the window, respectively. One of said circuits includes the solenoid winding 24, while the other circuit includes both the motor 32 and switch 48 in series. The change from position H to position K results in a reversal of the battery connection, whereby to cause a corresponding change in the direction if rotation of the motor, without affect ing the operation of the solenoid, as will be readily understood.

In either the H or K position of the switch A6,-spring 25 under .compression, whereby to purge clutch disc2fi against the worm wheel surface 21 with sufiicient pressure to provide the :necessary driving torque but still permit slipping when the window has travelled to the open or closed limit positions. At the same time, the dog iclutch ll, 12 and in turn the crank 10 are disengaged from the window driving gear 38. When the .switch is :released so as to return to the arrived in the engaging position. At the same time, the friction pressure between the worm wheel 33 and friction disc 21 is released, so that manual operation of the window will not be subject to unnecessary drag.

Should the faces of the clutch teeth [I and I2 contact each other during the engagement, initial rotation of the crank [0 will result in engagement of the clutch due to the action of springs 25 and 50, as will be understood.

While the operating switch 46 has been described as being of the self-centering type which upon release returns automatically to the center or neutral position, a normal switch may be employed, as is understood.

There is furthermore shown in Figure 2 a means for holding the crank H1 in any vertical position, while the mechanism is switched from manual to automatic control. Since the crank 10 .is mounted freely on shaft I4, it tends to rotate to the lowermost position of the crank knob as shown in Figure 1 .due to the action of gravity. In order to avoid this, there is provided a spring washer 52 which serves to'hold a friction disc .53 in contact with the door panel or other support 54. Friction disc 53 is radially keyed to the shaft or hub of the crank [0.

Figure 3 shows schematically a window operating mechanism for automobile doors or the like combined with a regulating system according to the invention. Numeral 51 indicates the door, 58 represents a window pane which is mounted upon a support or channel member 60 serving as a guide for a pair of slide rollers 6|. The latter are attached to the ends of a pair of links 62 each of which is in turn attached to one of a pair of gears 40, being in mutual meshing relation, one of said gears corresponding to the gear .40 of Figures 1 and 2 and in turn meshing with the driving gear 38.

Figure 5 shows a modification comprising a double spring washer 65 replacing the coil spring 25 to save space and improve the compactness of the structure.

Figure 6 shows a spring washer 56 interposed between the retaining ring 35 and the friction disc 26, which arrangement will not relieve the friction drag during manual operation, but serves to conserve additional space by providing a constant initial friction pressure, whereby to enable the use of a smaller coil spring 25, as will be understood.

Figure '7 shows an alternative means for preloading the friction coupling by confinin the spring 25 from its normal free length It to a precompressed length m, so that operational compression over only a limited distance n will be required. Sleeve 61 is arranged to slide within sleeve 68 and the entire assembly is retained by the staked or spun-over inner edges of the sleeves, as shown at 69. This arrangement, like those of Figures and 6, reduces the operating stroke for the sleeve shifter I3, in which case it may be possible to eliminate the spring 50.

Figure 8 shows an arrangement, wherein the lever 2| is eliminated by providing a link 10 attached to the solenoid armature 23, said link being formed with rack teeth H directly engaging the extended teeth I8 .of the pinion gear 20, in the manner shown and understood from the drawing.

Figure 9 shows another modification of the invention, wherein the sleeve shifter l3 consisting of magnetic material acts directly as the armature or plunger of a solenoid winding 12 concentrically surrounding the shaft 14. A snap or micro switch 14 is controlled by a nose or projection 13 of the shifter l3 to close the electric circuit of the motor 32 after energization of the solenoid in either the H or K position of the main operatin switch 46. The position shown in Figure 9 corresponds to the neutral switch position J in which case the crank I0 is connected to the driving shaft I4 by way of the dog clutch teeth H and 12. If the switch 46 is operated to either the "H or K position for automatically raising or lowering the window, respectively, the sleeve shifter l3 will be attracted towards the right, i. e. to a position in which the magnetic flux through the solenoid winding is a maximum, whereby to establish frictional driving connection between the disc 26 and worm wheel 21, while at the same time disengaging the crank I0. Thereupon, the motor circuit will be closed by the switch M to initiate the window regulation. In the drawing, a single pole switch has been shown by using a motor with both forward and reverse winding, in a manner well understood.

As pointed out, the friction coupling between the disk 26 and the worm wheel 2'! may be so designed as to act as an overload or release means for the motor 32. Thus, should the window become jammed, due to accident, weather or for other reasons, the members 26 and 21 will allow of relative slippage, thereby relievin the motor from excess load. Release of the switch 45 to the neutral position will then enable a manual operation to overcome the additional resistance caused by the jamming of the window. Thereafter, the motor may again be started for automatic regulation of the window. This makes it possible to use a smaller motor than would be required if only automatic operation without manual control were provided. In case of total motor failure, manual operation may be resorted to exclusively, and in general manual and automatic window regulation may be employed alternately without mutual interference or requiring any switching over operations, in accordance with existin requirements or personal desires, as will be understood.

While there have been shown and described a few desirable embodiments of the invention, it will be evident from the foregoing that this disclosure is for the purpose of illustration and that variations and modifications in size, shape and arrangement of parts, as well as the substitution of equivalent elements for those herein shown and described, may be made in accordance with the broader scope and spirit of the invention, as set forth in the appended claims. The specification and drawings are accordingly to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. In a window regulatin device, operating mechanism for opening and closing a window, a rotatable shaft for driving said operating mechanism, a gear mounted coaxially with respect to said shaft and normally rotatable therearound, a reversible electric motor drivingly connected to said gear to effect rotation of the same in either direction, a clutch sleeve surrounding said shaft drivingly connected thereto but freely slidable therealong, a crank element normally rotatable with respect to said shaft and having clutch teeth form in the axial face thereof facing said clutch sleeve, complementary clutch teeth in the axial face of said clutch sleeve whereby axial movement of said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element will serve to establish a driving connection between said crank element and said shaft, friction clutch means between the opposite axial end of said clutch sleeve and said gear, spring means surrounding said shaft and having an end engaging said clutch sleeve and the opposite end engaging said friction clutch means, said sprin normally urging said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element, axial movement of said clutch sleeve toward said gear compressing said spring means sufficiently to cause said friction clutch means to establish a driving connection between said gear and said shaft, and means for controlling the axial position of said clutch sleeve.

2. In a window regulating device, operating mechanism for opening and closing a window, a rotatable shaft for driving said operatingmechanism, a gear mounted coaxially with respect to said shaft and normally rotatable therearound, a reversible electric motor drivingly connected to said gear to effect rotation of the same in either direction, a clutch sleeve surrounding said shaft drivingly connected thereto but freely slidable therealong, a crank element normally rotatable with respect to said shaft and having clutch teeth form in the axial face thereof facing-said clutch sleeve, complementary clutch teeth in the axial face of said clutch sleeve whereby axial movement of said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element will serve to establish a driving connection between said crank element and said shaft, friction clutch means between the opposite axial end of said clutch sleeve and said gear, spring means surrounding said shaft and having an end engaging said clutch sleeve and the opposite end engaging said friction clutch means, said spring normally urging said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element, axial movement of said clutch sleeve toward said gear compressing said spring means sufficiently to cause said friction clutch means to establish a driving connection between said gear and said shaft, and means for controlling the axial position of said clutch sleeve, said last-mentioned means including a solenoid which when energized serves to move said clutch sleeve toward said gear.

3. In a window regulating device, operating mechanism for opening and closing a window, a rotatable shaft for driving said operating mechanisrn, 'agea'r mounted coaxially with respect to said shaft and normally rotatable therearound, a reversible electric motor drivingly connected to said gear to'effe'ct rotation of the same in either direction, a clutch sleeve surrounding said shaft drivingly connected thereto but freely slidable therealong, a crank element normally rotatable with respect to said shaft and having clutch teeth form in the axial face thereof facing saidclutch sleeve, complementary clutch teeth in the axial face of said clutch sleeve whereby axial movement of said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element will serve to establish a drivin connection between said crank element and said shaft, friction clutch means between the opposite axial end of said clutch sleeve and said gear, spring means surrounding said shaft and having an end engaging said clutch sleeve and the opposite end engaging said friction clutch means, said spring normally urging said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element, axial movement of said clutch sleeve toward said gear compressing said sprin means sufficiently to cause said friction clutch means to establish a driving connection between said gear and said shaft, and means for controllin the axial position of said clutch sleeve, said last-mentioned means including a, solenoid having an armature and spring means associated with said armature whereby when said solenoid is energized said clutch sleeve will be moved toward said gear and when de-energized said clutch sleeve will be moved to engage said crank element under the additional urging of said last-mentioned spring means.

4. In a Window regulating device, operating mechanism for opening and closing a window,-a rotatable shaft for driving said operating mechanism, a gear mounted coaxially with respect to said shaft and normally rotatable therearound, a

reversible electric motor drivingly connected to said gear to effect rotation of the same in either direction, a clutch sleeve surrounding said shaft drivingly connected thereto but freely slidable there along, a crank element normally rotatable with respect to said shaft and having clutch teeth form in the axial face thereof facing said clutch sleeve, complementary clutch teeth in the axial face of said clutch sleeve whereby axial movement of said clutch sleeve into engagement I with said crank element will serve to establish a driving connection between said crank element and said shaft, friction clutch means between the opposite axial end of said clutch sleeve and said gear whereby when said clutch sleeve is moved toward said gear a driving connection will be established between said gear and said shaft, means for controlling the axial position of said clutch sleeve, said last-mentioned means includin a solenoid which when energized serves to move said clutch sleeve toward said gear, and a circuit and source of power for supplying current to said electric motor to drive the same in either direction, said solenoid being included in said circuit whereby said solenoid will be energized when current is supplied to said electric motor, and contact means in said circuit controlled by movement of said clutch sleeve control means for preventing closing of saidmotor circuit until said crank and clutch sleeve are disengaged.

5.111 "a window regulating device; operating mechanism for opening and closing a window; means forcontrollin said mechanism comprising an electric motor, a power source and switch means for starting said motor in either direction; a shaft driving said mechanism; a manually operable hand crank releasable clutch mean-s between said crank and said shaft including a sleeve member mounted slidably upon and in non-rotative relation to said shaft, said crank and sleeve being provided with interengaging clutch teeth; releasable friction clutch means operable by said sleeve and interposed between said motor and said shaft, spring means surrounding said shaft and having an end engaging said clutch sleeve and the opposite end engaging said friction clutch means, said sprin normally urging said clutch sleeve into engagement with said crank element, axial movement of said clutch sleeve toward said gear compressing said spring means sufficiently to cause said friction clutch means to establish a driving connection between said gear and said shaft, a solenoid winding connectable to said source by said switch means together with said motor during either direction of rotation thereof, said sleeve being further adapted to be shifted between two positions upon energization and de-energization, respectively, of said solenoid, whereby to release said clutch means and to establish driving connection by said friction coupling means in one position during the operative condition of said motor and to release said friction coupling means and to connect said clutch means in the other position durin the inoperative condition of said motor, a separate armature for said solenoid, and a rack and gear connection between said armature and said sleeve.

6. The combination according to claim 1, said last-mentioned means comprising a solenoid, said sleeve acting as a magnetic armature.

PETER F. ROSSMANN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

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